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Lugia

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Fig

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Well, to start the whole new "what would pokémon X looks like..." threads, here's one that keep puzzling me.

Lugia.

It's a legendary pokémon, so PARTICULARLY mysterious. But even then, there are questions to be asked. Is it a BIRD or a DRAGON? What are those at the back of its head, feathers-shape? Horns? (which would back the dragon theory)?

Lugia is a sea-dwelling creature, so it must have some means of breathing underwater. Or does it surface to breat every once in a while like a whale? (in that case, could one of its protuberance at the back of its head be a breathign apparatus?

What do you guys think?
 
If I remember correctly, Ash's pokédex mentioned that Lugia rarely goes to the surface and it only does so when it's raising its child. That would mean its breathing system is much more related to that of fish.

I'm inclining more for the dragon theory, since Lugia looks more like a dragon than a bird: ie, shape of the head, tail and feet. Or perhaps, an hybrid of the two: dragon and bird with a dominance on the dragon part.
 
Dex Entries, stolen from PPN :

Gold It is said that it quietly spends its time deep at the bottom of the sea because its powers are too strong.
Silver It is said to be the guardian of the seas. It is rumored to have been seen on the night of a storm.
Ruby Lugia's wings pack devastating power - a light fluttering of its wings can blow apart regular houses. As a result, this Pokemon chooses to live out of sight deep under the sea.
Sapphire LUGIA's wings pack devastating power - a light fluttering of its wings can blow apart regular houses. As a result, this POKeMON chooses to live out of sight deep under the sea.
FireRed It is said to be the guardian of the seas. It is rumored to have been seen on the night of a storm.
LeafGreen It is said that it quietly spends its time deep at the bottom of the sea because its powers are too strong.
Emerald LUGIA is so powerful even a light fluttering of its wings can blow apart houses. As a result, it chooses to live out of sight deep under the sea.

Its species is listed as DIVING pokémon, which is interesting in that "diving" species usually refer to species which must alternate between depths. I'd see that as possible support for the "whale breathing" theory.
 
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Couldn't those "horns" on the back of its head be a special diving fin? They fold back on it when it dives to give it speed, and fold back out to slow down. Like the feathers of a bird in flight. Personally, I would equate it to any of the numerous diving birds. The ones that will go from being in the air to swimming in the water in a heartbeat.

And to call it a dragon would mean first defining the word dragon. By the very definition I would go by, it's NOT a dragon because it lacks the various reptilian qualities you see in most dragons...even in the Pokemon world.
 
True. Then again, Latios and Latias lack reptilian qualities and are clearly defined as dragons.
 
True. And, because I lack a good response, I claim them as the exceptions that prove the rule.
 
Lugia, from what I remember of the film, is a creature dwelling in what is termed the benthic zone of the ocean (near the ocean floor). He/she would have to be able to breathe underwater. It doesn't seem to have any mammalian characteristics.
 
I think that Lugia is supposed to be the opposite of Ho-oh, who is a phoenix. I don't know much about Eastern mythology, but isn't the dragon supposed to be sort of the phoenix's opposite in Chinese mythology, or something...
 
That might actually be a valid point, Roses...
 
Lugia's breathing system can't really be related to a fish's
because when he uses Aeroblast he needs to suck in air....

is that a valid point?
 
Blackjack Gabbiani said:
I'm under the impression that, while Ho-Oh is the Sun, Lugia is the Moon.
Click to expand...
agreed, which is why I think if they were ever to remake the GS games, that it would be Sun Gold and Moon Silver...
that's just me... and someone that mentioned it on the poke-amph forums...


Lugia HAS feathers, not scales
so I believe he's more bird than dragon, and it looks like he has a beak... sorta, but he stays a long time underwater...
my sister came to the conclusion, that he's a duck... Farfetch'd?
 
deja0entendu said:
Lugia's breathing system can't really be related to a fish's
because when he uses Aeroblast he needs to suck in air....

is that a valid point?
Click to expand...

I think it might be, but has Lugia ever used Aeroblast underwater? If Lugia is a hybrid bird/dragon, then it's safe to assume that he can breathe oxygen like birds do, while still being able to breathe underwater like a fish. He survived on land and in the air in the 2nd movie without much difficulty and he was also seen swimming close to the ocean floor.
 
Alternatively there is always the possibility of some sort of diving creature that has to replenish air once in a while (in underwater caverns that contain pockets of air, such as the one in the Seafoams in GSC?). That crest-like white shape on top of the head does NOT looks like feathers (unlike, say, 'cuno), so it could be some sort of breathign apparatus?
 
Pelicans and other diving birds have water-repellent feathers and extra air sacs in their lungs which tend to make them float. They are able to reach depths in water by diving at speed from the air. But these birds do surface rapidly, however. A cormorant's dive usually lasts less than 30 seconds.
 
In other words, something akin to a whale.
 
A whale is a good analogy. Sperm whales can dive to depths of 250 feet to hunt for squid and then surface. However, I always got the impression that Lugia could dive very deep, say, 500 feet or more. And I also got the impression that while Lugia could breathe air, it preferred to live underwater rather than on land.
 
Please note: The thread is from 20 years ago.
Please take the age of this thread into consideration in writing your reply. Depending on what exactly you wanted to say, you may want to consider if it would be better to post a new thread instead.
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